


goodnight to you, too

by vhscassette



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-28
Updated: 2018-04-28
Packaged: 2019-04-29 04:50:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14465385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vhscassette/pseuds/vhscassette
Summary: tien, of course, had noticed yamcha's absence when he arrived back to earth, chiaotzu by his side.//au where death is simply nothing, no kais to train particular orange clad dweebs, no nothin. just the void.//also, i honestly didnt think about the implications of that canonwise But I mean Yolo, its a plot starter at least LMFAO





	goodnight to you, too

When Tien was wished back with the dragon balls, it felt like he was resuscitated from a dark void. He didn't think death would be as, well, deafening and blinding as he felt in the unreaching depth of nothing, the end of all life. Back in death, he felt like everything and nothing had existed at the same time, his name all but dissolved into shadows, Chiaotzu an intangible concept, and the Earth at large being nothing but dust in a long-unknown void. But now, Tien was back.

He remembered Chiaotzu glancing at him with a stunned look in his eyes, obviously feeling the same uncommunicable feeling Tien did from recovering from death. Tien saw tears bubble in Chiaotzu's thankful, fearful wide eyes, and nearly started crying.

Tien, somehow breaking his glance with Chiaotzu, proceeded to look for the only other person in the world asides from Chiaotzu that he _needed_ to look for. He spotted Yamcha a bit into the distance, sitting against the wall with his head buried into his knees. Deep-set concern rose in Tien's chest at the sight of this, his brain almost entirely shoving aside all social 'norms' that he would've needed to follow at this point. But, as fate would have it, the gang of Tien's friends ended up holding him up for a little bit for a "all-of-our-friends-are-back-to-life" party.

 

* * *

 

 

Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu's "recovery party", as Bulma put it, lasted well into the night. It wasn't every day that people could be revived from the valley of death, Bulma had excitedly bubbled over a glass of champagne. And, while this was true, Yamcha had all but disappeared from the party meant for him.

Upon questioning Goku, Tien received his answer; "Oh, well, uh," Goku replied casually, "Yamcha said he wasn't feeling so good and went home. Somethin' about wantin' to get some rest and see if it gets any better?"

Tien, mind a bit numb from everything, nodded a bit and tried honing on wherever Yamcha's ki signature was. "I'm gonna head out for a little bit and see what's up with Yamcha," Tien mumbled a bit distractedly, tired from his revival.

"What?!" Goku exclaimed, "Y'can't go like that! This is a party for you, Chiaotzu, and Yamcha!"

Tien sighed and had to hold back rolling his eyes. "Look, Goku," Tien started with a gentle but firm tone, "I wanna see what's up with Yamcha. Death was.. at the very least, strange for me. I want to make sure he's alright, or, at the very least, not _disappointed_ or anything by my return. I'll come back if he's fine."

Goku thoughtfully stared at him for a bit and looked away. "Well," he started, trailing off like a parent letting a child buy a candy bar, "I guess you can. Tell Yamcha I said hi, okay?"

Tien nodded wordlessly before turning away, gathering enough ki to fly off. He opened his mind to allow telepathic communication with Chiaotzu and said, "I'm going to check up on Yamcha. I heard he doesn't seem well."

"Do you want me to follow you?" Chiaotzu had responded, his sweet, childlike voice a comfort within the strange confines of Tien's mind.

"I'm okay, although I appreciate your help, Chiaotzu. You have fun, okay? You can go back to the house when you're done. Just don't eat too many sweets or youll get sick," Tien chided amusedly.

"Whatever, whatever," Chiaotzu giggled before happily bubbling, "Goodbye! Have a good time! Tell Yamcha that I saved him a piece of shortcake if he wants it!"

Tien chuckled to himself before closing the communication line and flying off into the night, honing on Yamcha's ever-familiar ki signature.

 

* * *

 

Yamcha had been alive for at least a few months before Tien and Chiaotzu were revived, but good lord, his apartment was a mess. It isn't to say that Tien wasn't used to these messes, but he supposed that death had blanked his mind out for so long that he didn't remember just how many empty energy drink cans Yamcha could stack on his kitchen counter. The lights in Yamcha's apartment were off, but a kitchen window faintly let moonlight trail into the kitchen/living room. Puar's cat bed was empty, Tien assumed from her being at the party.

Yamcha's room door was open, a lump piled under blankets. Tien recognized bottles of melatonin and Zoloft, most empty, sitting on his nightstand. He didn't ever remember Yamcha having sleep issues, or really a whole lot of psychological issues in general asides from his fear of women, before his death.  Shutting the front door of the apartment behind him, Tien began walking towards Yamcha's bedroom.

"Tien, what is it?" Yamcha hoarsely murmured, weak as he laid under the blankets, "I'm fine, tryin'a sleep."

Tien quietly walked into his bedroom before sitting bedside by the lump that was Yamcha, chest aching slightly with concern. "I came to check on you. You left the party," he mumbled, voice gentle with understanding. Tien then heard a sigh erupt quietly from the bedsheets, then silence.

The silence kept flowing, as Tien continuously was lost for words.

"Tien, I feel blurred," Yamcha quietly mumbled, pulling his blanket off to reveal fear in his eyes, "My entire head feels shifted out of place, and it's been this way ever since I came back. I don't know what to do."

Tien felt a strong pang of relation and suffering in the glance Yamcha was giving him, wondering just how long Yamcha's been by himself on this. Obviously he went to the doctor about this, probably with Bulma's steelhearted influence, and received enough medication that may or may not have helped him, but regardless, the answer scared Tien. Yamcha's eyes glimmered in the dark.

"When I saw you come back," Yamcha shakily said, his eyes revealing much more sadness than he did at first, "I thought that you'd feel totally fine. I thought that it was just my fault I feel this way, and that you'd just think I'm a bother, but,"

Yamcha began crying, his body trembling with exhaustion and sobs.

Tien gently pushed him over on the bed and laid beside Yamcha, wrapping his arms around him quietly but firmly. His hands felt his black hair, knotted with tangles.

He was the most beautiful man Tien had ever known.

"Don't cry, Yamcha. It's alright," Tien had murmured gently into his ear, noticing how Yamcha appeared to shiver in his arms before clutching back to him. "I felt the same from the very start, too. You're not alone here."

  
"Why does it feel like this, Tien? Why did this happen?" Yamcha sobbed weakly, mourning the loss of his past self.

Tien stroked softly at Yamcha's tangled hair, all desire to keep personal space lost to death. "I'm not sure, Yamcha. I'm not sure," Tien mumbled, closing his eyes, "but I'm sure we can figure this out together. You won't be alone with me around."

Suddenly, Yamcha's quiet sobbing stopped as he trembled. Just as Tien was about to pull away to check if he was okay, Yamcha gripped his shoulders before kissing him. Hard.

Tien, by all means, was stunned to no end but couldn't help but kiss him back. He felt the tears on Yamcha's cheeks and his arms wrapped tight around his neck, one of Yamcha's shaking hands holding the back of his head. Shivering, Tien kissed him harder, holding back tears as he remembered the fight long ago against the Saiyans and the Saibamen. Tien had loved and lost, hated himself for losing the chance of truly loving him, and then lost Chiaotzu. Regret, knives sharper than the one that scarred his chest wide open, had stabbed him until Tien fatally burned himself out on his own accord and followed right along with the two of them.

It hurt so much.

"Hey, Tien, wh- why are you..? Did- I- you _want_ this, right, Tien?" Yamcha suddenly rushed out, eyes wide in fear as Tien opened his eyes to blurred vision. Tien felt tears burn through his eyes and spilt down his cheeks.

"Of course I wanted this," Tien cracked, sobs threatening to spill out of his throat, somehow unable to say the words in his head. He wanted Yamcha. He wanted Yamcha to be alive again during the Saibamen fight. He wanted Yamcha's burned corpse to have moved again, to never have died to begin with, to never have left him from the start. Tien's hands wiped repeatedly at his eyes before choking out a sob and keeping them there. "You died, Yamcha," he cried in whispers among the darkness of Yamcha's room, "you _died_ , and I missed you."

Yamcha's eyes widened in pain, "oh, Tien, no," whispered sadly under his breath before hugging him tightly as Tien had done for him mere minutes prior. "Tien, no, _no_ , it's okay. I'm _here_ , Tien, don't cry," Yamcha attempted to comfort, voice loving and gentle as he moved one of Tien's hands away to brush away the tears that never seemed to end. "I'm here, Tien. I won't leave again, I'm--" Yamcha started before pausing, hesitating over something.

Tien, eyes red and head slowly beginning to throb with a cry-headache, hoarsely said, "..What? What is it?"

Yamcha glanced away, obviously deep in thought about what he was going to say, and continued to hesitate.

With tears slowly building back in his eyes, voice beginning to crack once more, Yamcha whispered, "I'm really sorry I died on you, Tien. I'm sorry."

Tien instantly understood why Yamcha hesitated, because Tien instantly started bawling like a baby. "Don't be sorry, Yamcha! God _damn_ you, you damned bastard!" Tien cried, squeezing Yamcha in a hug with trembling hands. Only Yamcha would have the balls to say something _that_ damned depressing at a time like this and have it be genuine. Tien nearly chuckled amidst his tears at that before immediately sinking into the pain of memories.

"Fuck- I'm, I'm sorry, Tien, please don't cry anymore, I'm here! I'm not dead!" Yamcha rushedly attempted to comfort, the tone in his voice definitely indicating he didn't quite expect this kind of reaction.

Tien, paused, freezing in place before staring at Yamcha dead in the eyes, all three eyes puffy and dripping with tears. An expression that one could say was a mix of pissed off, in-love, and shocked was splattered across Tien's face, much to the contrast of Yamcha's now startled grin as he stared.

"Yamcha?"

"Yeah, Tien?"

"What made you _think,_ " Tien started, grabbing his shoulders hard, "that saying that kinda _shit,_ " shaking him with emphasis, "was a good _plan_?"

Yamcha's eyes lit up with laughter before he shrugged wildly in Tien's grip. "I don't know, man! I felt like I _had_ to after all the shit you were saying! What else should I say?!"

Tien full heartedly laughed, body shaking with adrenaline and the still quite annoying cry-headache running through his system. "Not _that_! That was.. incredibly upsetting, good lord!" Tien giggled, still finding himself ten feet deep in love with Yamcha from the days they trained together.

Yamcha smiled before his eyes lit up once more, this time with the tell-tale sign of a great statement. Tien rolled his eyes and groaned with a smile.

"Well," Yamcha started-

"What are you going to say?" Tien said in fake annoyance, chest bubbling in affection.

"Hold on! Hold on, so," Yamcha attempted to continue-

"Yes?"

"You said that you wanted me to say something else, right?" Yamcha slyly said, raising his eyebrows in a flirty manner that _still_ somehow caused Tien's face to burn.

Tien sighed. "Yes. Yes I did."

"Then how about," Yamcha smiled, getting close to Tien's face, "you slide up into bed with me and we can just kinda, y'know, chill. Or catch up. Or, I mean, _catch up_ , if that's your thing, I mean--"

Yamcha quickly got an open-handed knock to the head before Tien chuckled, "Shut up, and yes, I'll lay with you for tonight. Just as long as those dumb flirts of yours stay packed in that tiny head of yours."

Yamcha began to argue as Tien chuckled, getting up to slide under the covers with him.

 

It was nice to be back home again.


End file.
